3/1 To Win
Back at Pride Park Stadium to kick-off the ‘run-in’, Derby County will be looking to return to winning ways when they take on Sunderland on Good Friday.
The Rams head into the game off successive draws (kick-off: 7:45pm) and dcfc.co.uk has collated all the information you need ahead of the visit of Chris Coleman’s men…
WHAT’S THE LATEST TEAM NEWS
Derby County will be without Tom Huddlestone, who will serve his one-match suspension when the Rams face Sunderland.
The 31-year-old was sent off for two bookable offences in the goalless draw with Nottingham Forest at the City Ground before the international break.
Chris Baird, however, is once again available and could return to the fold against Sunderland.
The Rams look likely to be in a position to call upon a number of players once again for the meeting with the Black Cats.
George Thorne, Matej Vydra and Joe Ledley could return to the fold.
Marcus Olsson had not returned to training at the time of writing (Wednesday), whilst Sam Winnall also continues to be ruled out of action.
WHAT THE BOSS HAD TO SAY?
Speaking to RamsTV ahead of Good Friday’s game, Gary Rowett said: “If you want to get promoted, you have to make sure that the small margins go your way, and we’re working incredibly hard to do that.
“We talk to the players about what we need to do to turn those good performances into an excellent one, and that’s my focus.
“We have done it before and we know that we have the quality, but now it’s a case of showing it, and we have to fight to show it.
“We are looking forward to the game, and we’re asking everybody to stand up and be counted, whether that’s the fans or the players.
“We have to go out there and make it happen and fight for what we want to achieve, and that is our focus.
“Under the lights at Pride Park, it’s a fantastic game to be a part of.”
ONE TO WATCH
A near ever-present, Aiden McGeady is a proven threat at this level and is likely to be the Black Cats’ biggest dangerman when they arrive at Pride Park Stadium on Friday.
His move to Wearside came after an impressive loan spell with Preston North End towards the end of the 2016/17 campaign in which he contributed nine goals and eight assists while at Deepdale under Simon Grayson’s stewardship, and that saw him named North End’s player of the year.
He has backed that up this year with six goals in a struggling Sunderland side.
The Republic of Ireland international brings a wealth of experience to the table from a career that has been largely spent in domestic and international top-flight of football.
He made almost 200 appearances for Celtic after emerging through the youth system at Celtic Park, before spending three-and-a-half years in Russia with Spartak Moscow before moving to Premier League side Everton in January 2014.
The winger spent time on loan at Sheffield Wednesday during the second half of the 2015/16 season prior to linking up with Preston, where he proved a popular figure.
HOW DO I SECURE MY SEAT
The matchday ticket prices have been confirmed for Derby County’s Sky Bet Championship meeting with Sunderland at Pride Park Stadium.
Ticket prices are increased on the day of a game, so pre-purchasing prior to matchdays is recommended.
Tickets are available for Derby County supporters from:
Adults - £23
Senior Citizens (aged 65+) – £16
Under-18s - £13
2 to 12 Year Olds - £8
* Category D & E prices are listed above.
A £1 per ticket booking fee applies when purchasing by either telephone or online.
For matchday ticket enquiries and purchases, please visit the Ticket Office at Pride Park Stadium or call 0871 472 1884 (option 1).
Alternatively, supporters can also buy tickets online right here on dcfc.co.uk.
* Calls cost 13p per minute, plus your phone company's access charge.
SUPPORTER INFORMATION
Friday’s game will be our official Prostate Cancer UK fixture. A number of collectors will be positioned in and around Pride Park Stadium before kick-off in a bid to raise money for the charity.
On top of that, there is still time for you to sign up for ‘March for Men’ this coming June. Full details can be found here.
WHAT’S TO COME IN THE RAM
A former star of the Stadium of Light and now a key member of the coaching staff at Pride Park Stadium, Kevin Phillips headlines the Sunderland instalment of our award-winning matchday programme.
Spanning seven pages, Derby’s first-team coach exclusively discusses being the last Englishman to win the European Golden Shoe, a goal-laden playing career, making the transition into coaching, his role with the Rams and what now fills the satisfying feeling he used to get from finding the net.
Jam-packed, as ever, with that and more exclusive features and content, supporters can purchase a copy of our 76-page official matchday programme for just £3 from all around Pride Park Stadium.
Click here for a full review of what other content you can expect to find in your Sunderland edition of The Ram
OUR LAST MEETING WITH THE BLACK CATS?
SUNDERLAND 1-1 DERBY COUNTY
Friday 4th August 2017
Derby County kicked off the new 2017/18 season by earning a 1-1 draw with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light
Bradley Johnson scored the campaign’s opening goal after 11 minutes, slamming in a rebound after Johnny Russell’s initial effort had been blocked.
Sunderland equalised shortly before half-time as Lewis Grabban, now at Aston Villa, slammed in a penalty after Jacob Butterfield was adjudged to have handled inside the box.
The Rams had the best opportunity to claim all three points when Matej Vydra fed in Chris Martin, but the forward blazed his effort over with just the goalkeeper to beat.
Sunderland: Steele, Jones, Cattermole (C), Vaughan, Grabban, Galloway, Ndong, Browning, McGeady, Kone, Honeyman
Substitutes not used: Khazri, O’Shea, Matthews, Gibson, Ruiter, Gooch, Asoro
Derby County: Carson, Wisdom, Keogh, Davies, Forsyth, Huddlestone, Johnson, Butterfield, Weimann (Vydra, 66), Russell (Bryson, 89), Martin (Nugent, 78)
Substitutes not used: Mitchell, Baird, Pearce, Bennett
WHO’S THE MAN IN THE MIDDLE?
James Linington will be the man in the middle when Derby County kick off their Easter with a home match with Sunderland at Pride Park Stadium.
Linington has officiated 34 games so far this term, the majority coming in the Sky Bet Championship. from which he has produced 115 yellow and five red cards.
This match will be the second involving the Rams that he taken charge of after he was also the man in the middle when Gary Rowett’s men drew 0-0 with Cardiff City at the end of September.
In total, this weekend’s referee has officiated 10 matches involving Derby in his years as a referee, in which there have been three wins, five draws and just two defeats tasted.
Linington will be assisted by Lee Venamore and Steven Meredith on the lines, whilst Oliver Langford has been appointed as the fourth official.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE ACTION
As this fixture has been selected for live TV coverage, and due to international broadcasting rights, RamsTV will only be able to broadcast the match live in select countries, although a live audio stream of the game will also be available. Please click here for more information.
Here’s a full rundown of what’s coming up on RamsTV:
ONLINE NOW
- Pre-Match Interviews – RamsTV talks to Gary Rowett and Scott Carson as they take a break from training to chat about Friday’s game with Sunderland.
- Pre-Match Press Conference: Sunderland - Full coverage of manager Gary Rowett’s pre-match press conference at the Training Centre in partnership with the University of Derby.
- The Easter Preview Show – Owen Bradley is joined by former Rams Kevin Wilson and Shane Nicholson as they provide a comprehensive look ahead to Derby’s two games over the Easter weekend.
FRIDAY
- Matchday Live: Derby County Vs Sunderland (7pm) – Owen Bradley will be live in the RamsTV Pride Park studio with former Rams Michael Johnson and Marco Gabbiadini. They’ll be taking an in-depth look at both sides ahead of kick-off at 7:45pm.
- Due to international broadcasting rights, RamsTV will be streaming the game live only in select countries, click here for more information, RamsTV subscribers will be able to listen to audio coverage of the game and also watch extended highlights and a replay of the full 90 minutes the following day.
- Post-Match Extra: Sunderland (10pm approx.) – Head over to Derby County’s Facebook page to share your thoughts on Friday night’s result with Owen Bradley and Shane Nicholson in RamsTV’s interactive post-match show.
SATURDAY
- Match Highlights: Sunderland (12pm) – Relive all the goals, key moments and incidents from the game the night before.
- Matchday Relived: Sunderland (6pm) – A chance to catch RamsTV’s entire Matchday Live production from the night before, including pre-match build-up and match action along with half time and full-time analysis.
The RamsTV streaming service is available to all supporters who register on dcfc.co.uk.
To access the full RamsTV streaming service will cost the following:
First-Team Audio Commentary (worldwide) - £45 annual subscription or £5 per month
First-Team Pay Per Game - Match Streaming (outside UK) - £5 for the individual game
A link to packages can be found here.
The two premium services are in addition to the regular pre-match and post-match interviews on RamsTV.
Supporters will also be able to follow all of the action, as usual, across our social media channels.
We will be providing behind the scenes content across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, where we will also provide a blow-by-blow account of proceedings at Pride Park Stadium.
